I just finished performing the Rachmaninov all night vigil. What an amazing piece of work.
What a geninus old Sergei was. I never thought I'd be singing a solid hour a capella in old church slavonic--a language I really don't know much about. Indeed it was never intended to be used in ordinary worship. Who could possibly dominate it? Maybe a highly trained cathedral choir in a big city. Besides, I found out from a visiting Russian scholar that the Old Believer Russian colony near here finds polyphony not only distasteful, but actually more like an abomination. I'm glad Sergei was not one of them. He uses harmony in a different way than the square Germanic hymns we're used to. Lots of 6/4 chords and the progressions are sometimes surprising.
How can I describe this music? you have got to hear it. As soon as some mp3's come back I will put some on the website of Corvallis Repertory Singers
Monday, October 16, 2006
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